„A challenging analysis of the relations between work andtechnology from an anti-essentialist perspective. Key issuesconcerning the production and consumption of technology are debatedin a lucid and scholarly manner. Highly recommended.“ ProfessorJohn Hassard, Keele University
„The application of contemporary sociological models oftechnological change in the workplace is still in its infancy. The Machine at Work plays a crucial role in bridging thisgap. It is one of the few recent publications helping the study oftechnological change at work to come of age.“ Professor RichardBadham, University of Wollongong
„This book is well written and accessible. Besides being ofinterest to scholars, especially students of sociology, organisational theory, innovation and management studies, TheMachine at Work should provide stimulating reading for thosewith a more general interest in contemporary analyses oftechnology.“ The Times Higher Education Supplement
„A fine introductory text.“ Information Technology andPeople
„[A] fascinating book ... [It] raise[s] very realmethodological questions and, what is more to the point, attemptsto provide answers to them.“ British Journal ofSociology
At the core of much thinking about technology is the assumptionthat the technical character and capacity of artefacts is given. The enduring image of deus ex machina captures the idea thatit is the essential capacity 'within' a technology which, in theend, accounts for the way we organize ourselves, our work and otherlife experiences. Recent work in the sociology of technology, bycontrast, sets out relativist and constructivist accounts oftechnology, which begin to challenge this central assumption.
The Machine at Work includes a reinterpretation of theLuddites; a review of the social processes of development ininformation technology; a reassessment of theories of the role oftechnology in work; and an analysis of the common limitations ofsome constructivist and feminist perspectives on technology. Thebook argues that only a commitment to a particular conception ofconstructivism enables the kind of radical rethinking abouttechnology and work relations that is needed.
This engaging and informative text will be of interest tostudents in a range of subject areas - from sociology, organizational theory and behaviour, to industrial relations, management and business studies.
